What-Ifs
by TailfinTheStarFury
Summary: AU's of episodes where things went a bit differently. Some plausible, some Thorston-level crazy.
1. Ornaments, Right?

**I don't own Httyd or Rtte, Dreamworks and Cressida Cowell (I think) own them.**

 **What-If: Fishlegs had explained ornamentals and edibles better to Snotlout in the episode 'Not Lout'.**

 **Some of the dialogue is right from the episode.**

* * *

 **"** I could...help...you." Snotlout said reluctantly, gesturing with both his hand towards Fishlegs.

Fishlegs scoffed and began chuckling, " _You_ " he began, pointing at Snotlout "want to help _me,"_ he indicated himself "fix my garden?" "Why?" he asked, suspicious.

"I'm just trying to be, you know, more thoughtful and strategic." Snotlout said, walking closer to Fishlegs. "Truthfully, I've always respected your work, Fishlegs," he placed an hand on Fishlegs's shoulder, "and I really like...plants," he lied, clasping his hands behind his back, hopeful. If he learned to be more 'thoughtful and strategic', as Hiccup had put it, perhaps Hiccup would grant him the title of leader of the Riders after he became chief. It couldn't be that hard, after all, Jorgensons didn't ask permission to be great.

"Oh, well in that case let's get started." Fishlegs said, pleased that someone shared his interest. "Your two basic types are ornamentals and edibles. You don't want to mix those up, believe me." he stated, articulating with gestures. "Then you have - you're not listening to me are you?" he asked, noticing Snotlout drifting off.

"Uh, noooooo - I got it, ornaments and edibles, blah blah blah."

Fishlegs sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He realized he needed to change tactics. "Look, edibles are plants you eat, understand?" At the other boy's nod, he continued: "Edibles are what Heather uses to make her delicious mutton."

"Yumm, Uh huh, go on."

"Ornamentals are plants that are aesthetically pleasing - _look nice_ , like the flowers you said Heather had," Fishlegs told him.

"So, is this ornament or edible?" asked Snotlout, shoving the plant in Fishlegs's face.

Fishlegs pushed away Snotlout's hand so the plant wasn't right in his face, then said "It's ornamen _tal,"_ stressing the last syllable for clarification.

"Alright, let's stick this over here," said Snotlout, getting on his knees and grabbing a spade, which was conveniently located nearby. He was ready to replant the plant, which would help him become more strategic (somehow).

"Oh no no no, you have to be strategic in your planting Snotlout, make sure you plant it in the right spot." Fishlegs took the spade from is hands and made him put the plant down.

Oh, so that was the strategic element to this. "Uh, how?" he asked.

"Some plants, like the herbs Heather uses, only grow in the sun, and will die in the shade. Then you won't get Heather's good cooking. Some, like those Red Oleanders over there, grow only in the shade."

"Woah, woah, wait a minute! aren't Oleanders deadly to dragons!?" Snotlout exclaimed, frightened for Hooky (not that he'd admit it).

"Only Blue Oleanders are deadly, Red ones are completely harmless to dragons." Fishlegs reassured. "I would never plant something deadly to my Meatlug!" At her name, Meatlug twitched a bit in her sleep before continuing to snore.

"Okay, so how do you know what a plant likes? It's not like plants can talk." Snotlout asked.

"I use trial and error."

"Huh? What?"

"Do I have to explain everything to you?" he asked rhetorically, a bit frustrated. "Trial and error is where you test something, like whether a plant can live in the sun or not, and if it works you continue to do it, if not you try something else."

"Okay, I've got this. So, what does this one like?" asked Snotlout, holding up the same plant. This time thankfully not in Fishlegs's face.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"You see, Hiccup, some plants, like Dragon Root, grow in the sun, and some plants grow in the shade, and stuff like that." Snotlout commented patronizingly. In the background, Fishlegs was rolling his eyes at Snotlout's antics.

"You know, I gotta say, I'm pretty proud of you Snotlout." Hiccup said.

"Well, it was Fishfa-legs who taught me all that, so you have to give him a tiny bit or credit. Just a tiny bit though!" Snotlout replied, to Fishlegs's slight surprise.

"Are you sure you're feeling okay Snotlout?" Astrid asked.

"Shut up Astrid."

fin

* * *

 **I hope the characterizations of the characters (** **characterizations of the characters, ha.) were okay.**


	2. Sister of the Midnight Sun

**Meraki7734: It is sort of Fishlout or just friendship, however people want to take it. Thank you so much for reviewing, but I am not taking requests for stories right now. I still have like 15 more ideas I'm going to write.**

 **sdkop21: Thank you. Sorry for the long wait until the next chapter.**

 **Anonymous Noob the 2nd: Thanks.**

 **Guest: Sorry I am not taking requests right now, but that is an interesting idea.**

 **A/N: Sorry for the long wait but here's the next chapter. I am not taking requests for stories right now. I don't own Rtte or Httyd, or I would have kept Viggo alive.**

 **What-If: What happens when it is the midnight sun week and Viggo has not gotten any sleep.**

* * *

Ryker was looking for Viggo. It was now the fifth day of the midnight sun, and uncharacteristically, Viggo had not slept at all. Normally he would have at least gotten some sleep, not wanting his mind to be muddled by lack of sleep. However, obsessing over how to defeat those Thor-forsaken Dragon Riders took up most of his time now. Viggo had taken advantage of the fact that it never got dark to obsess even more.

As he approached Viggo's tent, which was smack dab in the middle of the spiral-shaped island, he was hoping to force Viggo to get some sleep, before sleep deprivation caused what was famously known as the 'midnight sun effect'. Last time it had ever effected Viggo was when he was ten years old, and he had spent the majority of the day believing he was a dragon, a Skrill to be exact, before falling asleep.

The hides that made up the entrance of Viggo's tent were being kept open for the sunlight to filter in. Walking through the entrance, he saw the familiar figure of his brother, scribbling furiously on a piece of parchment. "Viggo." Viggo started, as if just noticing him. That in itself was and indication of just how much lack of sleep had affected him. Typically always on guard, even while planning, he would have heard Ryker's footsteps before he even entered the hut. He would never have been surprised by his entrance.

"Have you seen Jade? I haven't seen her since yesterday," Viggo asked, still facing away from Ryker at his desk.

"Jade?" Ryker questioned, now certain the 'midnight sun effect' had a hold on Viggo.

"Come now brother, surely you haven't forgotten about our own little sister?" Viggo asked, amused.

"Viggo, we don't _have_ a sister," Ryker insisted, annoyance bleeding into his voice. Chuckling, Viggo stood up and turned to face Ryker.

"Ryker, I do believe you are suffering from lack of sleep, which has resulted in you forgetting about Jade." Viggo spoke slowly, as if speaking to a small child.

 _Leave it to Viggo to retain the ability to speak rationally, even while sleep deprived and speaking of a nonexistent sister._ Ryker thought. "It is not I who am suffering from lack of sleep, it is you. _I_ made sure I got enough sleep. _You_ thought it would be a good idea to not sleep at all. _Now_ you are going on about an imaginary sister of ours!" he said, yelling the last part.

"Consider this attentively Ryker, I can recall clear and concise memories of our sister, and if the midnight sun was influencing me, my consciousness would conceive memories I don't recall, something not meticulously stored in my memories, and I would not remember it in my memories and I would not sustain the ability to communicate these memories because they would not be genuine memories. As that assuredly not the case, it's you who the midnight sun has captured in its invulnerable grip,"

 _Now he is still speaking in the intellectual way he usually does, even more so, but he is speaking nonsense. Intellectual nonsense._ Ryker thought, grinning at Viggo's nonsensical speech. "If you really believe Jade is a real person, then tell me this brother, what does she look like, and how is she?" asked Ryker, now thoroughly amused by the sleep deprived Viggo.

"Her name is Jadeite Grimborn, and she's nineteen years old, she has short black hair that comes to her shoulders, and dark blue eyes. She wears a green shirt with a belt made of woven grass, and it has a dagger on it. She wears a dyed purple leather skirt and gray leggings. She has gronckle iron shoulder pads and boots made from the skin of a Vicious Mindbender. She also has a necklace with a piece of green jade shaped like a tooth, remember, the one we gave to her on her eight birthday? The weapon she uses is a green dragon-proof metal sword like yours, but only one. She is also very good, almost as good as me at Maces and Talons" Viggo said in quick succession, and Ryker had a hard time keeping up with what he was saying.

"Alright, I believe you, even though I don't remember her, let's go look for her then." Ryker said, playing along, wondering what Viggo would do.

The rest of the day was spent looking for Jade, at least Viggo was, and confusing many of the Hunters, until they started playing along too. Viggo was convinced the Dragon Riders had kidnapped 'Jade', and was going to attack them, but Ryker convinced him that sleeping would make him more alert and ready for battle, as his reaction time was off, proved by the many times Ryker was able to surprise Viggo by sneaking up behind him.

When Viggo woke up, he was back to normal, but didn't remember any of what he had done, and Ryker was quick to remind him, as were the Hunters Viggo had encountered yesterday. The best thing that came from the situation was having a comeback for whenever Viggo subtly or not-so-subtly hinted at his lesser intelligence. At least _he_ hadn't foolishly spent nearly the entirety of the midnight sun week awake. At least _he_ hadn't gone on rambling about an imaginary sister of theirs.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

A few weeks later however, Viggo came up to him holding something in his hand. "Do you know where this came from?" When Ryker looked closely at it, he realized it was a necklace, with a tooth-shaped piece of jade on it.

Ryker fainted

and Viggo was left wondering

what had happened

at least until Ryker

woke up and told him

just what _he_ had told Ryker

about Jade

during the midnight sun week.

* * *

 **Jade was actually a character I was going to create and Viggo and Ryker would think she was dead and Jade would think they were dead because dragons had burned down their village. Jade was going to be a Dragon Rider, would ride a Vicious Mindbender and convince Viggo that dragons were good, but** **realized Jade's story was too much like Heather's and then decided not to write about her.**


	3. Harek

**Gyromice89: Thank you, I was trying to make it funny. I might make a Viggo survived chapter** **later, but right now I'm not really taking requests for stories.**

 **Massive HTTYD Fan: I wasn't really thinking about doing it in Ryker's perspective, but I needed** **someone who knew Viggo and would see how the midnight-sun affected him, so it turned out to be Ryker's perspective. Yeah, he was acting more long-wordish than usual. I used a** **thesaurus for that.**

 **What-If: Well, It's not exactly a what-if, more of a head-cannon I have. The man Viggo saved from the lava was the one pretending to know Heather's father.**

 **A/N: Words in italics are either flashbacks or thoughts, I think you can figure it out.**

* * *

 **Harek's POV**

Harek found himself growing nervous as Viggo drew closer to him, not because he was afraid of his scarred face, as so many of his fellow Hunters were, but what news he might be bringing. News that Krogan was displeased with his work. He hoped that wasn't the case.

"Harek, was it?" asked Viggo after coming to a pause in front of him, hands clasped behind his back.

"Yes sir," Harek answered, eyes flicking down to his feet.

"Come now don't be like that, I'm not here as the harbinger of bad news,"

"Right sir, I understand sir," Harek said, relieved as he dared to glance at Viggo's face, which seemed sincere. He knew Viggo was an expert manipulator, but believed he was telling the truth here. Unless it was all some big ruse to bring his guard down and strike at the right moment with the news of his doom.

"Remember that I said perhaps you would repay me in some small way after I saved your life?" Viggo asked.

"Yes, I do," was Harek's response. He owed his life to Viggo and would do what it took to repay him.

"I require your assistance. I'm in need of someone who can be subtle, and will teach you if need be."

* * *

 **Viggo's POV**

Viggo had asked the man's name after saving his life, so if he needed some favor, he would be able to find him. Fortunately though, he had remembered the man's face and did not have to ask around for a 'Harek'. Honestly though, why were all his mens' faces so similar. After approaching the man, Viggo was for a fleeting moment confused as to why this man seemed nervous. Last time Harek had not been frightened by his scar, but then realized the Hunter believed he was bringing bad news from Krogan. He felt annoyance and slight anger at the man for believing he would serve as a lowly messenger for Krogan. They were business partners, he was not a servant of Krogan. Instead of showing anger though, he put on a reassuring smile and reassured the man that he was not doomed. He felt amusement as the Hunter's face lit up in realization. It did not take much time to train the man in the art of manipulation, he seemed to be a quick learner, or maybe just a natural manipulator.

* * *

 **Harek's POV**

Viggo's task was not that difficult, but when he first heard that he would need to learn to be manipulative, he was worried he would not be able to. Krogan apparently needed something, an object that one of the Riders had in her possession. What he needed to do was to pretend he knew the girl's deceased father, to pretend that he was still alive and to make sure the girl believed him. _"You must play into her desires. She wishes to find her father, and believes him to be a good man. Give her a sense that you know her father, that he has done great deeds. Sing his praises if you have to. If she asks an unexpected question, do not panic, just give her the most reasonable answer you can without showing on your face that you are lying."_

He's been waiting an hour or so before the girl finally arrived. She was wearing a hood and had raven locks of hair and was unmistakably the girl Viggo had described. As she came to a stop in front of him, he began.

"Nice to finally meet you, Heather. I've heard so much about you." He was slightly worried he would screw this up, and then punished for messing the mission up. Viggo had given him clothing not closely resembling that which the Dragon Hunters wore so she would not become suspicious.

"Is everything alright?" asked Heather, narrowing her eyes, perhaps seeing something in his expression. She stood, not taking a seat. _Odin's Beard. She knows, she does._ Panic coursed through him for a moment before he regained control. However, he was fortunate, as it did not show up on his face.

"Yes. It's just..." he began, and glanced down as he struggled to find an adequate answer. "Well the resemblance is remarkable." She seemed to find his answer believable, as she drew the chair across from him and sat down.

...

"...I was trapped, cold, injured, on my last leg, if you will. But your father, he..." he paused, and rested his chin on his fist, trying to think up a believable story. "Well, let's just say that I wouldn't be here today without his undying support and generosity."

"So what about now?" was Heather's question as she leaned forwards to hear more. Harek could tell she was enthralled in the story, believing every word of his speech as if it was real, as if it wasn't a cheap story made up on the spot to manipulate her.

"He vowed to spend his life building huts for homeless Vikings. He calls it 'Oswald's Huts for Humanity'. And that's where he is at this very moment." He winced internally. Perhaps he was laying it on a bit too thick.

"That's incredible. I can't wait to see him. To meet him, really. I was so young." She seemed to genuinely believe him, and the fact brought a slight amusement to him and sense of accomplishment that he, a 'simple-minded' Hunter could fool someone so thoroughly.

"And I will be honored to expedite the reunion." _Expedite? Such a big word. Seems like the time I spent in Viggo's company has rubbed off on me._ Both Heather and Harek stood up, intent on leaving the building. "No. This way," he said, gesturing to the back door as Heather turned towards the front. _I'm almost done. Just get the girl out the door and you're done Harek._ She looked back towards him.

 _"_ Uh, but the entrance is-"

"We mustn't be seen. Too dangerous," he said, cutting her off.

"Dangerous? I don't understand." _Why oh why do you have to question me, I'm nearly finished._

"Heather, I implore you to trust me. There are those who would rather not see a father-daughter reunion." _Implore. I'm still sounding like Viggo aren't I?_ He was really hoping she would believe his poorly thought out lie. _I_ _f she asks an unexpected question, do not panic, just give her the **most reasonable** answer you can. _Viggo's words resonated inside his head. _It's a little late for that._

 _"_ But that makes no sense," Heather said in a tone that said his reasoning didn't hold merit in the realm of truth. Harek started walking towards the back door, hoping she would follow him.

...

"I have to tell you, Harek, the thought of feeling my father's arms around me, it's indescribable." Heather had followed him out the back door without any resistance, she was most likely too overjoyed at the thought of seeing her father again to worry about such discrepancies in his story.

"I've assumed it would be," he said without glancing back at her, knowing by the sound of her footsteps that she was following him. He hadn't really assumed that, he'd just come up with that at the moment, he hadn't thought about that at all. Though that was due to the fact that he was in fact not bringing her to be reunited with her father, and the fact that he did not care much about the other's feelings.

"I just hope he doesn't jab me with that rusty old hook of his. _That_ I do remember." She said this in a strange tone of voice, like it was forced. _Perhaps she does not hold much fondness, towards her father's hook._ He chuckled.

"Yes, Oswald's hook has needed a good polishing since the day we met." Right as he finished saying this, he heard the unmistakable sound of metal scraping against metal. His eyes widened. _Her axe. She's figured it out. How?_

"My father doesn't have a hook, Harek." _Of course. But **I** was supposed to be the one manipulating **her**_ _._

"No, he doesn't," came the reply, not from him but from another, amusement evident in his voice. _Krogan._ He turned around to see him on the roof.


End file.
